Sea kayakers warned to be prepared after man rescued clinging to his boat

Kayaker rescued by RNLI and Coastguard near St Davids

SEA Kayakers have been warned to be prepared after a man capsized from his boat and was unable to call for help.

Yesterday morning, (Saturday, May 11) St Davids Coastguard Rescue Team was paged with reports of a kayaker capsized and clinging to the kayak west of Traeth Llyfn.

St Davids Lifeboat RNLI launch was requested to launch by the Coastguard control centre in Milford Haven.

St Davids Coastguard Rescue Team met with the first informant who was positioned on the top of Carn Lwyd, south of Traeth Llyfn.

With eyes on the casualty a Coastguard Rescue Officer was able to confirm the position of the kayaker to the lifeboat.

The kayaker was rescued but had been in the water for in excess of forty minutes.

He was treated by the lifeboat team as they made their way back to St Justinian.

Posting on Facebook, St Davids Coastguard warned of the need to be prepared while sea kayaking.

"For those embarking upon sea kayak journeys please ensure you carry appropriate means of summoning assistance should you get into difficulties," they said.

"This could include a combination of mobile phone; VHF; flares, RYA Safetrax and personal locator beacon.

"Ensure someone on land is aware of your planned journey. Know how to read both the tides and weather forecast and how these will affect your planned route."

The Coastguard also gave thanks to those who helped them: "Thanks to St Davids Lifeboat and Adrian the first informant. Adrian spotted the overturned kayak, called the coastguard and kept eyes on the casualty for in excess of forty minutes."

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